Take a Trip to the West Coast on your New Zealand Vacation
The West Coast region, located on the South Island of New Zealand, is simply known by locals as “The Coast” and stretches 600 kilometres/360 miles from north to south along the Tasman Sea coast. It is scenic with wild coastlines and rugged mountains and is largely remote and sparsely populated, all to be seen on a New Zealand vacation.
There are three major towns, Greymouth, Westport and Hokitika, the largest and most important being Greymouth which can be reached by the TranzAlpine train on New Zealand Tours leaving daily from Christchurch and offering views en route of fantastic scenery. Nearby is Shantytown, famous during the gold rush days of the 1860s. In fact, one can still try one ’s hand at gold panning here and can also enjoy a ride on a steam train. The coastal road between Westport and Greymouth offers an extremely dramatic and scenic drive.
Two great hikes are along the Heaphy Track and the Cascade-Hollyford Track. An impressive sight along the coast is Punakaiki with its pancake rocks and blowholes.
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